Sheffield - Manchester route would be first major cross-Pennines link since M62 | Calendar - ITV News 15 March 2016 at 11:50am Sheffield - Manchester route would be first major cross-Pennines link since M62 George Osborne is set to announce funding to explore the possibility of a trans-pennine tunnel Credit: Press Association Spanning the Pennines has presented a transport challenge for centuries but cost, environmental impact and a sheer lack of ambition have been more of an obstacle than engineering know-how in recent decades. Now a proposal has been announced to build a Manchester-Sheffield link beneath the Pennines. Two hundred years ago the hills provided a grand test for great engineers who produced wonders of the industrial revolution like the three-mile-long Standedge canal tunnel and the Ribblehead Viaduct. But the last major transport link to be built across the Pennines was the M62 motorway, completed in the early 1970s.

Work underway on the M62 in 1967 Credit: Press Association Since then, scheme after scheme has been little more than a tinkering with a road and rail infrastructure which, with the exception of the M62, was largely developed by the Victorians. The road links between Sheffield and Manchester - 35 miles apart as the crow flies - provide a clear example of the issues. There are currently three unsavoury choices. The 75-mile long motorway route involves taking the M1 the wrong way, almost to Leeds, before joining the overcrowded M62 over the Pennines. The other two routes - the Woodhead Pass and the Snake Pass - are more direct but take the would-be traveller on single track, winding routes across the high moorland, often closing in the winter due to wind or ice or accidents, or all three. Woodhead Pass is a treacherous route in bad weather Credit: Press Association The M67 - dubbed "the motorway to nowhere" - exemplifies the frustration of the cross-Pennines motorist. From the M60 Manchester ring road, the M67 heads confidently off towards the Pennine hills and Yorkshire beyond.

But, after just five miles, the motorway stops abruptly at a roundabout in Hyde. This is where a slow crawl of single-carriageway traffic heads towards the Woodhead Pass through Mottram, one of the worst pinch-points on the whole UK road network. The original plan - half a century ago - was that the M67 would be the start of a trans-Pennine motorway linking Manchester with the M1 in South Yorkshire. Now, this solution is not even mentioned, such is the inconceivability of driving a six-lane motorway through the Peak District National Park. The Chancellor's 2016 Budget will provide funding for alternative routes across the Pennines Credit: Press Association Instead, the new headline proposal is to tunnel under the Pennines. Chancellor George Osborne is set to provide £75 million of funding to develop a plan to link Sheffield and Manchester underground. When the Department for Transport announced it was exploring the feasibility of a major new road link between Sheffield and Manchester in December 2014, it said: "Such a connection could have a dramatic impact on the economy of the north, particularly in combination with plans for high speed rail links.

"It would be capable of fundamentally changing the nature of the journey between two of the most important cities of the north. "But the invaluable landscapes and ecological significance of the Peak District National Park rule out a surface link. The only credible solution may be to construct a tunnel under the central part of the Pennines." The M62 motorway under construction in July 1967 Credit: Press Association Last year, an interim report on such a tunnel outlined the general idea but with no details about routes or terminal locations. Part of last November's report said: "The tunnel is likely to be longer than most other road tunnels in Europe, and the psychological aspects of travelling through a tunnel of this length are broadly understood. "However, it is appreciated that we will need to undertake further work to understand driver behaviour and to consider how advances in technology and appropriate tunnel design could help to mitigate this issue." Last updated Thu 17 Mar 2016 CBRD » Motorway Database » M62 Main Images Timeline Exit List For most of the north of England, the M62 is a lifeline.

That's not as much of a cliché as it might sound: its central section crosses the Pennines, a place of harsh winter weather, and before the motorway came along, there was often no way across in winter. The M62 was designed to be the pass that would never be closed. For a motorway with such an unassuming number, it notches up an astounding array of achievements. It is the nearest that Britain has to a coast-to-coast motorway, linking Liverpool with Hull, more or less. The bridge over junction 22 at Moss Moor is the highest motorway in the UK, while out near Goole in East Yorkshire, it's just two or three metres above sea level, making it also the lowest. It is the motorway that has evolved and shifted its route more than any other, starting life as the Stretford and Eccles Bypass west of Manchester. It now only uses about a mile of that original route, with the rest becoming first M63 and now M60 . At the Liverpool end, the motorway was never finished. It starts at junction 4, with a steep ramp from street level to a length of elevated motorway through the suburbs.

The city's engineers had planned it to run in a tunnel to Islington where it would have ended on the never-built Liverpool Inner Motorway. Instead it just stops at a congested set of traffic lights on the ring road. The section it's known for, and the part that truly defines it, is the spectacular run across the Pennines. Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire are two densely built-up conurbations whose fringes are only about ten miles apart, but between them is a shockingly bleak and forbidding wilderness. Engineers and labourers spent more than five years fighting the elements to build that motorway. At Scammonden, the M62 crosses the top of an earth dam, built with material excavated from the cutting immediately to the west. The bridge spanning that man-made cutting was the longest single-span non-suspension bridge in the world when it was opened. The Pennines presented an engineering challenge on a scale rarely seen in this placid little country. The Pennine section of the M62 is also home to an enduring urban myth: the house in the middle of the motorway.

There really is a working farmhouse there, and someone really does live in it, tending to sheep that graze on the moorland. But the legend that the farmer there refused to move is wrong. Land for motorways is bought by Compulsory Purchase Order, and a CPO is just that: compulsory. If the M62's engineers had wanted to flatten the farmhouse, it would have gone. In fact, while it was originally scheduled for demolition, geological surveys showed that the ground below it would be unable to support a motorway, so the load was spread by building each carriageway separately, some distance apart. The house was saved from demolition, but sadly condemned to being situated in the central reservation, where to this day it is stared at by every passing motorist. Factfile M62 motorway - The Full Wiki The Full Wiki More info on M62 motorway Wikis Note: Many of our articles have direct quotes from sources you can cite, within the Wikipedia article! This article doesn't yet, but we're working on it! See more info or our list of citable articles .

Related top topics From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia M62 motorway Maintained by the Highways Agency Length: 107 mi [1] (172 km) 7 miles (11 km) are part of the M60 motorway Formed: Liverpool , Salford , Manchester , Bradford , Leeds , Wakefield , Hull The M62 motorway is a west–east trans-Pennine motorway in northern England , connecting the cities of Liverpool and Hull via Manchester and Leeds . The road also forms part of the unsigned Euroroutes E20 ( Shannon to Saint Petersburg ) and E22 ( Holyhead to Ishim ). The road is 107 miles (172 km) long; [1] however, for 7 miles (11 km), it shares its route with the M60 motorway around Manchester . [2] The motorway, which was first proposed in the 1930s, and originally conceived as two separate routes, was built in stages between 1971 and 1976, with construction beginning at Pole Moor and finishing in Tarbock on the outskirts of Liverpool .

The motorway also absorbed the northern end of the Stretford-Eccles bypass, which was built between 1957 and 1960. Adjusted for inflation to 2007, the motorway cost approximately £765 million to build. [3] The motorway is relatively busy, with an average daily traffic flow of 100,000 cars in Yorkshire, and has several areas prone to gridlock , in particular, between Leeds and Huddersfield in West Yorkshire . Since the Stretford-Eccles bypass was opened, the motorway's history beyond construction has included a coach bombing on 4 February 1974, and a rail crash on 28 February 2001. The motorway is additionally memorable for Stott Hall Farm , a farm in the Pennines situated between the carriageways, existing due to the geology of the surrounding area and has since become one of the most known sights in West Yorkshire . The road passes the cities of Salford , Manchester , Bradford and Leeds .

Between Liverpool and Manchester, and east of Leeds, the terrain of the road is relatively flat, while between Manchester and Leeds, the road crosses the hilly Pennines to its highest point on Windy Hill near Saddleworth Moor ( 53°37′47″N 2°01′07″W﻿ / ﻿53.62982°N 2.018561°W﻿ / 53.62982; -2.018561﻿ (Windy Hill) ), which is also the highest point of any motorway in the United Kingdom, at 1,221 feet (372 m) above sea level . [4] [5] [6] Contents Advertisements Origin of the road The origins of the M62 date back to the 1930s, where the need for a route between Lancashire and Yorkshire had been agreed after discussion by the respective highway authorities of the counties. [7] At the same time, it was envisaged that a route between Liverpool and Hull was also needed, connecting the two ports to industrial Yorkshire.

[8] Some years later, after World War II , the Minister of Transport appointed engineers to inspect road standards between the A580 road in Swinton and the A1 road near Selby . [8] In 1949, that year's Road Plan for South Lancashire specified the need to upgrade to dual carriageway and grade separation of the A580 road , and bypasses of both Huyton and Cadishead . [9] In 1952, the route for a trans-Pennine motorway, known as The Lancashire–Yorkshire Motorway, was laid down, with Ferrybridge chosen as the eastern terminus rather than Selby. [8] By the 1960s, however, the proposed upgrade of the A580 to dual carriageway in Lancashire was considered inadequate, and there was "an urgent need" to link Liverpool to the motorway network. [9] The route of the Lancashire-Yorkshire motorway was also considered inadequate as it failed to cater for several industrial towns in Yorkshire.

[8] When James Drake visited the United States in 1962, his experience with the Interstate Highway system led him to conclude that the Merseyside Expressway, planned to run only between Liverpool and the M6 , would need extending to the Stretford-Eccles Bypass , thus creating a continuous motorway between Liverpool and Ferrybridge (a link between Ferrybridge and Hull was not considered until 1964). [10] Initially these plans were unpopular and unsupported by the Ministry of Transport , but nevertheless the scheme was added to the Road Plan in 1963. [9] Construction Liverpool Inner Motorway Originally, Liverpool was intended to have an urban motorway along with Manchester, Leeds, and Newcastle. [11] In the latter cases, the motorways were constructed (the A57(M) , A58(M) , A64(M) and A167(M) respectively). The M62 was intended to terminate upon the Inner Motorway, but due to the Inner Motorway not being constructed, the M62 link was not constructed either.

[12] The proposed route would follow the railway into Liverpool as far as Edge Hill , with junctions with Rathbone Road and Durning Road, dropping two lanes at the latter, before terminating on the Islington Radial. [12] West of Manchester Originally, the section of the M62 west of Manchester was intended to be a separate motorway linking Liverpool with Salford , but a continuous motorway between Leeds and Liverpool was deemed to be more feasible, [13] [14] known as the M52. Construction of the motorway between Liverpool and Manchester started in 1971, with the construction of a link between the M57 and the M6 motorway . [9] Concurrently, a contract to link the M6 with Manchester was under way, which required the removal of unsuitable material and drainage of the land. This section was completed in August 1974, creating a continuous link between Ferrybridge and Tarbock . The section between Tarbock and Liverpool was the last section of the motorway to be completed, in 1976, due to the difficulties of building an urban motorway.

In total, two viaducts , ten bridges and seven underpasses had to be constructed to secure the structural integrity of the surrounding residential area. The motorway, however, reached only as far as Queens Drive (Junction 4), leaving the first three junctions unbuilt. [9] In Greater Manchester See also: M60 motorway , M602 motorway , and M63 motorway Construction starting in Milnrow , 1968 The first part of the M62 to be built was the Stretford-Eccles Bypass, which now covers junctions 7 to 13 of the M60 . [15] Construction started in 1957, and opened in 1960. [16] Two separate motorways were planned, with the M52 running from Liverpool into Salford ; the other, the M62, would link Pole Moor with the Stretford-Eccles Bypass. [13] The section between the interchange with the Stretford-Eccles Bypass and Salford is now occupied by the M602 motorway .

The Eccles-Pole Moor section was opened in 1971. [17] [18] Between Eccles and Pole Moor, 67 crossings of the motorway were required, including seven viaducts and eight junctions. [7] Between Windy Hill and Lofthouse The first section of the Yorkshire section of the motorway was completed in 1970, between the county boundary at Windy Hill and Outlane . [1] [19] The construction of the section between Windy Hill and Pole Moor was a difficult task, given the inhospitable hilly terrain, numerous peat bogs , and undesirable weather conditions.

To build this section of motorway, 12,000,000 cubic yards (9,200,000 m3) of material was moved, 8,000,000 cubic yards (6,100,000 m3) of which were solid rock; 650,000 cubic yards (500,000 m3) of this material was peat , which had to be cut from the rock strata and was eventually deposited on hillsides adjacent to the motorway. In addition to the problems caused by removal of the material, the geology of the moors resulted in the engineers needing to split the carriageways for 3 ⁄ 4 miles (1.2 km) in the middle of this section, sparing Stott Hall Farm from demolition.

[19] [20] Two notable bridge constructions were the bridge carrying the Pennine Way , which is curved downwards with 85-foot (26 m) long cantilevers , and Scammonden Bridge, often called the longest single-span non-suspension bridge in Britain, [21] which carries a B road 120 feet (37 m) above the motorway. [19] The 1-mile (1.6 km) section between Pole Moor and Outlane suffered fewer problems, with the summer weather being satisfactory. [22] Concurrently, a section of the motorway was being built between Gildersome and Lofthouse , [1] resulting in the demolition of a significant proportion of the village of Tingley to build the eponymous interchange. East of Lofthouse Two contracts were awarded for the section of the M62 between Lofthouse and Ferrybridge in 1972, and both were completed in 1974.

[23] [24] On the first contract, care was needed at the crossing of the River Calder due to the alluvial bedrock, while, on the second, precautions were taken as the length was built on old coal mine workings. The Ouse bridge, from the floodplain adjacent to the river. The sections between Ferrybridge and North Cave were the last sections of the motorway to be conceived [10] and built. [17] One of the most notable features is the bridge crossing the River Ouse west of Goole , a structure nearly 1 mile (1.6 km) long, rising to 30 metres above ground level, which commenced construction in January 1973. The bridge was delayed due to "steel supplies [being] a chronic headache" [25] and a partial collapse of the framework, caused by bolts joining a cross-beam to a trestle shearing. [10] The problems with the Ouse Bridge pushed the opening of the whole section east of Goole back to May 1976. [10] [17] Development after opening Junction 32a during construction in September 2005.

In 1987, the Department of Transport proposed a relief road running parallel to the M62 to combat congestion around Manchester. The relief road would have been restricted for long distance traffic, and the current route, part of the Manchester Outer Ring Road (later the M60 ), used for local traffic. The proposal also suggested the closure of Junction 13. The proposal was designated a "long term" improvement in 1994, and ultimately cancelled on 23 November 1995. [26] In 2000, the section of the M62 between Eccles Interchange and Simister Interchange (Junctions 12 to 18) was renamed to the M60. [27] Since then, two new junctions were opened—in December 2002, the previously missing Junction 8 was opened to allow access to the A574 and the Omega Development Site , [28] while in January 2006, Junction 32a was opened, to link the motorway with the recently upgraded A1(M) .

[29] The UK's first car-sharing lane on a motorway has recently been opened at Junction 26, allowing any eastbound traffic from the M606 with more than one occupant to use the lane. [30] Features Stott Hall Farm Stott Hall Farm, viewed from Moorland above westbound carriageway Stott Hall Farm ( 53°38′30″N 1°57′08″W﻿ / ﻿53.641599°N 1.952222°W﻿ / 53.641599; -1.952222﻿ (Stott Hall Farm) ) is an 18th-century farm on Windy Hill, situated between the two carriageways of the motorway between junctions 22 and 23. [20] [31] [32] The road forks around the farm for engineering reasons owing to the surrounding area's geology, though a local myth persists that the road had to be split because the owners refused to sell the land during its construction.

[20] This is not the case since the owners could have been obliged to sell via a compulsory purchase order . Due to its remoteness in the Pennines, the farm is often nicknamed as "the Little House on the Prairie". The farm is now separated from the motorway by crash barriers and a high fence to keep livestock in and drivers out, after some stranded motorists attempted to get aid when broken down. [20] [33] The farm, which was occupied by Ken and Beth Wild at the time of the motorway's opening, [31] is now farmed by Paul Thorp. [20] Due to its unusualness, it is one of the ten best-known sights from the motorway network [34] and one of the best-known sights in West Yorkshire . [33] The farm was used as a location for an early episode of ITV drama series, Where the Heart Is and has been the subject of a short documentary film. [35] High traffic levels 1999-2006 traffic flow graph.

The section between Halifax and Gildersome is one of the most congested roads in Britain, [36] and regularly slows to gridlock at Junction 27. [37] Annual average daily traffic flows of 100,000 cars were recorded east of the Pennines (Junction 22) in 2006 and 78,000 cars west of the Pennines. [38] This was up from 90,000 and 70,000 respectively in 1999. [39] By way of comparison, the UK's busiest motorway, the M25 motorway , carried a 144,000 cars between junctions 7 and 23 in 2006. [38] Proposed developments M62 J25 to J30 Managed Motorway An additional proposal to widen the motorway to four lanes between Junctions 25 and 28 to reduce congestion is in the planning stage. [40] Impact upon culture The M62 motorway is mentioned in a number of songs.

One of the earliest songs is "Driving Away From Home (Jim's Tune)" by It's Immaterial , a 1986 song that described the motorway as a way of getting to Manchester from the band's hometown of Liverpool. [41] "The Snake", a song from the album Secrets by The Human League , discusses the road as an alternative route to Hyde from the Snake Pass , the main subject of the song, and suggests the A628 as another alternative. [42] More generally, " It's Grim Up North ", by The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu , released in 1991, consisted of a list of towns and cities in the "grim North", in addition to the motorway itself. [43] Doves named a song after the M62 on their 2002 album The Last Broadcast , which is stated to have been recorded "under the M62 flyover at Northenden ", although the M62 is several miles to the north.

[44] [45] "The Man Who Lives On The M62" by John Shuttleworth and "Tradition" by Kathryn Williams refer not to the motorway itself, but to Stott Hall Farm. Shuttleworth compares his emotions of sorrow to those of the inhabitants of the farm, [46] while Williams uses the urban legend of the owner's refusal to sell the farm as an example of tradition. [47] Rugby league is a popular sport in northern England—so much so that a 1994 survey revealed that sixty percent of people regularly attending rugby league matches lived in only four postal districts along the M62. [48] Only three teams in the Super League , Catalans Dragons , Harlequins Rugby League and Celtic Crusaders play outside northern England, and thus the phrase "M62 corridor" is sometimes used as a synonym for the rugby league heartlands.

[49] Incidents Main article: M62 coach bombing On 4 February 1974, a bomb was detonated on a coach containing off-duty army personnel and family members, between Chain Bar (Junction 26) and Gildersome (Junction 27), resulting in the deaths of 12 people and injuries in 38 other people. After the attack, the nearby Hartshead Moor service station was used as a makeshift hospital and base of investigation. [50] The Provisional Irish Republican Army were deemed responsible for the attacks. [50] [51] Selby rail crash Main article: Selby rail crash On 28 February 2001, at 06:13 GMT , Gary Hart, a sleep-deprived driver, swerved off the M62 onto the East Coast Main Line near Selby . While Hart was calling the emergency services , a GNER southbound train collided with Hart's Land Rover , and subsequently derailed into the path of an oncoming freight train . Ten people were killed, including the drivers of both trains, and a further 82 were injured.

Route The M62's route in relation to the four major cities it serves: Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds and Hull. In addition to passing Warrington, Manchester, Huddersfield, Halifax , Bradford, Leeds and Wakefield, the towns of Huyton, St Helens, Widnes, Bury, Rochdale, Dewsbury, Pontefract, Selby and Goole are designated as primary destinations along the road. The road is a terminus to two motorways: the M57 motorway near Prescot and the M18 motorway near Rawcliffe ; and has four spur routes: the M602 motorway , which serves Manchester, the A627(M) motorway , which serves Oldham and Rochdale, the M606 motorway , which serves Bradford, and the M621 motorway , which serves Leeds. Despite Hull being listed as a primary destination, [52] the motorway downgrades near North Cave, 16 miles (26 km) west. [1] [53] The motorway starts on Queen's Drive, on Liverpool's middle ring road.

From there it runs eastward to Liverpool's outer ring road, the M57. The route has four exits for Warrington: Junction 7, an interchange with the A57 road , Junction 8, which also houses Ikea, [54] Junction 9, which interchanges with the A49 road , originally intended to be a motorway itself, [55] and Junction 11. Between these is Junction 10, which is a cloverstack interchange with the M6 motorway . The M62 then crosses Chat Moss before interchanging with the M60 motorway . [56] Due to original plans being to extend the section of the motorway into Manchester, motorists must turn off to stay on the route into Yorkshire. The M62 near Irlam , the original eastern terminus, in the early hours of the morning. In Greater Manchester, the motorway shares seven junctions, 12 to 18, with the M60 motorway.

Junction 13, which is signposted for Swinton, is situated only 1 ⁄ 2 miles (0.80 km) from Junction 12, leaving exiting motorists the hazard of crossing the still-merging M62 traffic. [57] After this, there is Worsley Braided Interchange, which, in addition to serving Junctions 14 and 15, also serves Junctions 1 to 3 of the M61 motorway , which terminates to Preston . The M62 passes Scammonden Water in West Yorkshire . Near Junction 22, the motorway gains a lane to climb Windy Hill, [56] before crossing the border into Yorkshire and interchanging with the rural A672 road, reaching the highest point of any motorway in England 1,221 feet (372 m). [6] There is then a 7-mile (11 km) travel through the Pennines to the next junction, passing Scammonden Water and Stott Hall Farm. The next junction is Junction 23, which is accessible only for westbound traffic.

After this, the road dips through a valley to Junction 24 [58] and drops slowly before interchanging with the A644 road at Junction 25. [59] Between Junctions 22 and 25, the road is used as a border between the metropolitan boroughs of Calderdale and Kirklees . [60] At Junction 26, named Chain Bar, the motorway interchanges with several roads: the M606 motorway, a spur into Bradford, the A58 road , which runs between Prescot and Wetherby , and the A638 road , which runs to Doncaster , then follows the old route of the A1 through Bawtry and Retford , to Markham Moor where it rejoins the A1 . The next junction also serves a spur route: the M621 motorway, before bypassing Leeds to the south to the interchange with the M1 motorway, Lofthouse Interchange, at Junction 29. East of Leeds, the motorway serves Wakefield at Junction 30 and crosses by the River Calder .

At Junction 32a, the road is crossed by the A1(M) motorway , which also runs parallel to it for a short distance. The next junction serves the A162 road, previously the A1, and Ferrybridge service station. After Ferrybridge, the motorway becomes relatively flat, except for a 1-mile (1.6 km) bridge that crosses the River Ouse . For approximately 10 miles (16 km) after this, the road runs towards Hull, serving Howden and North Cave, before downgrading to the A63 road . Junctions Data from driver location signs are used to provide distance and carriageway identifier information. [61] [62] M62 Motorway Pathetic Motorways Pathetic Motorways Where's this meant to be? In Yorkshire, specifically the West Riding between Leeds and Sheffield. So, what's the story? The village of Flockton, between the town of Huddersfield and the small city of Wakefield doesn't look on a map to have a large traffic problem. It only has a population of just over 1,000.

However, the A637 runs through the centre of the village, and it's really quite narrow at this point. Perhaps not surprisingly, a bypass seems to be needed to deal with the traffic. Presumably then, this is that bypass? Sort of, yes. The first proposals for a bypass of Flockton were made in the 1950s. However, at around the same time, the M62 was being inked in across the Pennines from the Manchester area to what became the M1. As can be seen from this map , the original route of the M62 was more southerly than the motorway we know today - being south of Dewsbury rather than to the north, with the M19 continuing to the east from the now M1/M62 junction towards the A1. Whilst this routing would have provided better access between Manchester and Sheffield (and beyond) than the modern route, it would have provided worse access to Bradford and Leeds. Perhaps co-incidentally, it would have helped with Flockton's traffic issue. Eventually, the more northern route was chosen. This left two problems: access to Lancashire from the Sheffield area, and we still had the traffic problems in Flockton.

This problem was made worse by the northern routing of the M62, as traffic would use the A637 to help "cut the corner". So, what was the solution? The Flockton Link, silly! The plan called for a motorway between roughly M62 Junction 25 near Brighouse, and M1 junction 38 near Haigh. This would have solved both the Flockton problem, and allowed traffic to take a 10 mile (16km) trip along a motorway rather than the 24 miles (38km) via M1 and M62. In 1970, the Ministry gave the go-ahead for the Link. And? And, well, nothing. The Link had got the green light, but as usual, the Ministry had more pressing concerns elsewhere - especially in the Manchester - Sheffield All Weather Route, also known as the M67 . By the time of the road budget cuts of the mid-1970s, nothing had happened - so the Link was killed off. And here endeth the lesson. Not quite.

A635 - Roader's Digest: The SABRE Wiki A635 Barnsley - Doncaster Route The A635 is one of the less important Pennine crossings, running between the M62 and A628 , and in fact, the section which crosses the Pennines itself is perhaps one of the most quietest Pennine Pass in the whole of the South Pennine Range. It's also one of the few roads, especially of this length, which became a huge victim of county changes in 1974; before this date, it ran through Lancashire, Cheshire and finally Yorkshire, nowadays it runs through Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire then South Yorkshire. Section 1: Manchester – Shepley The road now begins slightly further south than it used to. Instead of starting on Fairfield Street in Manchester City Centre, it begins immediately as the Mancunian Way ends, which at this point is the unsigned A635(M) . The motorway flows directly into our route. There's a TOTSO right at a set of lights, and we pick up the old alignment, which now starts as the B6469 .

Ashton Old Rd.,Manchester We can see the new City of Manchester Stadium on the left, site of the 2002 Commonwealth Games and now home to Manchester City FC. The road switches between S2 and S4 as it passes through the rather run-down urban areas of Ardwick and Gorton. A short one-way system at a triangular-shaped junction with the A662 leads onto a wider stretch as we near the M60 junction. This area is set to see significant industrial growth, with whole swathes of land either side of the now D3 road cleared and ready for development. After crossing the M60 at J23 , the road becomes older D2 again. A large roundabout takes us around Ashton town centre onto the relief road, and after a couple more roundabouts we are at the other side of the town, on the original route again. Up until now the route has been primary, but it becomes non-primary at the TOTSO left at the A6018 junction in Stalybridge . The primary route continues down the A6018 towards Mottram and the A628 Pennine crossing.

This is why the Pennine crossing for the A635, mentioned below, is so quiet, as most motorists decide to get to the other side of the Pennines via the A6018 and A628, hence it's primary status. Back to the A635 and just after the TOTSO We go around a sharp left-hand bend and pass through the northern part of Stalybridge and then continue to Mossley, this section is a few miles of decent 40mph speed limit. We also travel underneath a single-track railway arch on the Manchester to Huddersfield railway line, where the traffic flow is controlled by lights. We get our first views of the Pennines too, looming large on the horizon. We then arrive at Mossley centre, where there becomes a 30mph speed limit. To all locals, this area of Mossley is known as Bottom Mossley, the other being Top Mossley a little further up the hill on the A670 (which does coincidently run virtually parallel with the A635 from Ashton-Under-Lyne to Greenfield).

The reason for the addition of 'Top' and 'Bottom' Mossley is historic, as 'Top' Mossley historically lay entirely in Lancashire, with 'Bottom' Mossley lying in the North Eastern most part of Cheshire. Of course though, nowadays since 1974, both lie in Greater Manchester. The surrounding area gets noticeably richer and better-looking as we approach Greenfield in Saddleworth (which also happens to have a historic county, as before 1974 it was in Yorkshire and from then on became Greater Manchester) and we also cross the Pennine Bridleway and also pass a very old-fashioned looking mill which, unlike most others in the Oldham area, is still active. We soon get to the roundabout with the A669 , and if there has been any flake of snow in recent days, your best bet is to use this roundabout as a U-turn and proceed to junction 22 of the M62 instead, as you won't get much further on the A635. Immediately after leaving this roundabout, the Pennines announce themselves starkly with the start of a 4-mile long, twisty, narrow climb.

We level out at the summit on Saddleworth Moor, forever to be grimly associated with the Moors Murders of the 1960s. The road up to that point navigates through a typical narrow, deep Pennine Valley and the road here remains narrow and pretty much untouched for decades with unprotected drop-offs into ditches either side, and parts are also extremely bumpy and undulating. This first section of the Pennine pass recently got given a 50 mph speed limit up until the very summit of the hill and the 'new' county boundary with West Yorkshire where it becomes a national speed limit. A straighter section is the beginning of the descent down the Eastern side of the Pennines, and up here, around 450-500 feet above sea level, you will notice there may indeed be more walkers than vehicles because you will be on your own. This soon becomes a 2-mile long downhill gradient of 10%. It isn't as twisty or narrow as the ascent out of Greenfield though. We enter Holmfirth (where Last of the Summer Wine was filmed) and descend a long, straight hill.

Turning left at the bottom, we multiplex with the A6024 for a short distance until we TOTSO right at a tight (for large vehicles) set of traffic lights right in the town centre. We then climb a hill out of the centre, and resume our journey on a recently-resurfaced section as we approach New Mill. The A616 junction here has a rather odd layout. The through route is A635 east – A616 south, with the other two routes joining at-grade adjacent to each other. We must therefore TOTSO left (but not too far left lest we end up on the A616 north!), then ascend another fairly long hill, this time with a 9% gradient, before meeting the A629 at an at-grade staggered junction about a mile south of Shepley. Section 2: Shepley – Doncaster After crossing the A629 it's NSL for the first couple of miles and also quite flat, before we begin to drop down towards Denby Dale and encounter a 40MPH limit.

A fork in the road signifies the point where we must TOTSO as the A636 picks up the main line of the road towards Wakefield. We must bear right to continue our journey. We pass down the back of Denby Dale, home of the UK's largest pies (more on that on the A636 page), passing underneath the railway viaduct. We leave Denby behind, regain our NSL signage and make our way towards Barnsley on a very twisty and narrow road. We pass by the village of Cawthorne shortly before going underneath the M1 , without interchange, before slowing down for a brief bit of 30MPH road at Barugh Green, which becomes NSL and then down to 40 just before we reach a roundabout where the A637 from Lepton, comes to an end. At this point we regain our primary status. We turn to the right towards Barnsley town centre and as we crest a hill at Wilthorpe, enter a 30 limit. We continue to run straight into the centre, before we turn left and plunge downhill just outside the college.

At the bottom of the hill we meet the A61 at a large roundabout with a retail park in the middle, and piggy back onto it as we climb up Harbrough Hill, now on 40MPH D2 . We cross the A628 at a GSJ on the bypass before arriving at a roundabout, where the A61 and A635 leave to the left. We turn left then, and for us left again and pick up our exclusive road number once more. We head downhill, back on 30MPH S2 out of the centre of Barnsley. Shortly before we arrive at another roundabout, this time with the A633 , we gain a short stretch of D2 and a 40 limit. We head uphill once gain at the other side of the roundabout. We gain NSL signage, but the D2 comes to an end. (What the council give with one hand, they take away with another!) There's a short bit of 40 and then 30 as we pass through Darfield and then we meet a roundabout with the A6195 Dearne Valley Parkway.

At this point we go straight on but also take over the Dearne Valley Parkway name. Much of this area consisted of collieries not so long ago, and the parkway was constructed to improve access and to kick-start regeneration of the area. The parkway consists of 5 miles of D2 A6195 towards the M1 at Junction 36 , which passes next to the site of the old Cortonwood mine, now a huge B&Q, Morrisons and other many other stores. It also consisted of another bit of new road, the Goldthorpe bypass which we traverse next. It's NSL S2 with a couple of roundabouts on it before we regain the original course of the road just before Hickleton. This next bit is a short length of 30 which should have been altered years ago as it consists of a couple of very sharp turns on the brow of a hill. After that it's a pretty straight bit of NSL , before we slow down slightly to 40 as we pass through the hamlet of Marr.

Approaching the A1(M) Back to NSL after that, pass through a wood and then it's a roundabout which is the A1(M) 's Junction 37 . Out the other side, we enter a 40MPH zone and then run gently downhill through Scawsby, before we finish our journey at Saltergate Junction, a T-junction and set of traffic lights on the A638 (former A1 ) Great North Road. Original Author(s): Andie(Coasterjunkie)& Chris W A635 Potential trans-Pennine tunnel among £15bn road schemes | Insider Media Ltd Potential trans-Pennine tunnel among £15bn road schemes 1 Dec 2014 Yorkshire A potential trans-Pennine tunnel between Sheffield and Manchester, additional lane capacity for the A1(M) around Doncaster and upgrading the last non-motorway section of the A1 in Yorkshire between Redhouse and Darrington are among projects which have secured a share of £15bn of funding to improve the UK's road network.

Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin described it as the "biggest, boldest and most far-reaching roads programme for decades." Eighteen new schemes have been announced for Yorkshire and the North East which are worth about £2.3bn and could create an estimated 1,500 construction jobs. The projects include upgrading the A1 in South Yorkshire to raise the last non-motorway section to motorway standard, additional lane of capacity for the A1(M) around Doncaster upgrading the oldest stretch of two-lane motorway still in service, and smart motorways across the Pennines, from Rochdale to Brighouse. One of the main schemes in Yorkshire is cash for a study to examine the possibility of building a trans-Pennine tunnel between Manchester and Sheffield, as well as a strategic study to examine the feasibility of making the A66 and A69 into dual carriageways. Elsewhere, improvements are pledged for junction 45 of the M1 to allow increased capacity, and to support the nearby Aire Valley enterprise zone.

There will also be improvements at junctions 1-7 of the M621, with localised widening of sections of the motorway in central Leeds, and a new slip road to provide a direct link from the M62 westbound to the M606 northbound. Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin said: "Today I am setting out the biggest, boldest and most far-reaching roads programme for decades. It will dramatically improve the network and unlock Britain’s economic potential. "Roads are key to our nation’s prosperity. For too long they have suffered from under-investment." Chancellor George Osborne added: "Our long term-economic plan means today we can invest £2.3bn into the infrastructure in the North East and Yorkshire to improve, repair and expand our roads. This is all about investing in the northern powerhouse we are seeking to build." Contact Us Interested in advertising with Insider? Contact us on: Andy Slim, Commercial Director

Question: What motorway crosses the Pennines linking the A1 with Manchester
Answer: M62